Dilip Cherian Blog

Cherian's Choice

It wasn’t too long ago when babus used to vie for a stint at the Centre. But in the Modi era, babus seem to be increasingly reluctant to serve in Dilli. In fact, the government has admitted that the number of IAS officers appointed on central deputation is the lowest in five years.
According to the data with the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), only 153 IAS officers were appointed on central deputation under the Central Staffing Scheme (CSS) in 2018-19, as compared to 247 during 2016-17, 320 in 2015-16, and 340 in 2014-15.
The central staffing scheme, which is in operation for decades, provides a systematic arrangement for selection and appointment of eligible officers from the participating services at the level of deputy secretary, director, joint secretary, additional secretary and secretary in the Central government.
To encourage officers from participating services to serve on deputation, the Centre requests all cadre authorities twice a year to nominate eligible officers for deputation. But of late eligible babus have been lukewarm towards the opportunity to serve at the Centre. Is it because the Modi sarkar’s working methods are inimical to our entrenched babu culture?